Trash Bin Heroes
by Mauzzsi
Summary: Flynn finds himself alive on the Grid and without a way home. Set after Legacy.
1. Chapter 1

**Title**: Trash Bin Heroes  
**Rating**: T  
**Universe**: Legacy  
**Pairing**: None atm  
**Word Count**: 972

* * *

He felt himself free falling, and his mind turned to roller coasters. It felt the same, but there was no guarantee now that he would stop. That scared him, and it was right to be scared. He didn't feel himself hit a 'bottom' per say, but he knew after a few seconds he wasn't falling any longer. Flynn was old, and he was tired, and he didn't feel like getting up after a two minute plummet to who knew where.

The man finally decided to reach out a hand and feel what was around him - glass, plastic - textures that were a constant in the grid. It took him a few minutes, but Flynn finally mustered the courage to lift his head, eyes opening in a tight squint as he took in his new surroundings. It was black on black, with long strips of white lighting running under the translucent floor every 30 feet.

"Oh."

He couldn't think of much else to say - it was a bit humbling to be in the recycle bin. Flynn sat up, looking around, taking in the full view of what a temporary occupancy, for him anyway. He stood, groaning and muttering to himself as he dusted off his coat, even though no dust existed to accumulate. The User began walking, observing the space around him, he had visited it once before when he was still in control of the Grid, performing routine maintenance.

He figured a few minutes of contemplative walking was enough, and knelt down, pressing his hand to the ground. An interface appeared, and he began to cycle through the list of recently deleted programs. As he shuffled through, he felt a spark of hope - Tron wasn't there, which meant he was still somewhere on the Grid, alive. The ethics of bringing Programs back from deresolution wasn't lost to him, he hadn't mentioned it to Clu or Tron - in fact he hadn't thought much of it himself back when the Grid hadn't been such a hostile place. The recycle bin emptied out every cycle as it was, and whatever traces of a program that lingered there were lost for good.

"Hm..." he shuffled through the list of programs, making an unsatisfied face before his eyebrows rose. "There we are."

Flynn drags the profile of the program to the right, closing out the menu and issues the command to reconstitute. It's a slow process, feet first, and then legs, torso, arms and head. The program was dressed in his auxiliary garb, sans visor. The normally red circuit lining was a dull gray, and he stared ahead blankly with unfocused eyes. Flynn walked around to his back, removing his disc and activating it, streaming through his memories. After a few seconds he chuckled - he knew he had recognized this program; it was Clu's former assist.

It was against his better judgment, and he could hear Tron's voice in his head berating him for such a bad idea, but erasing the program's memory just seemed cruel. He fit the disc back in its place, turning it clockwise and activating the program. The aid jerked forward somewhat, circuitry flickering red before sustaining a healthy glow. He looked around, eyes focusing, somewhat panicked before resting on the User. Flynn was impressed, he'd never seen a program go from confusion to abject horror in under a second, and he couldn't help but snort.

"Chill out program I'm not here to do any harm." he said, raising both his hands, "Just need some help, that's all."

The program just stared at him, slowly starting to take a step back but Flynn crossed his arms.

"Just - relax its fine. What's your name?" Flynn knew the program's name, but better to start with a friendly question than a demand.

"..J-Jarvis, sir..." he answered, "Long live the Us-"

"Can it man, I know who you are." Flynn interrupted, and Jarvis' face fell a bit. Flynn turned, kneeling down, pressing a hand to the ground once more, a tall vertical panel rising out of the floor. Jarvis leaned to the side, watching as Flynn stood up and opened another interface screen. Jarvis couldn't follow what he was doing, writing commands and codes wasn't his function and he decided it best not to try it anytime soon. Flynn began to remove small slides of data from the panel, and held them out to Jarvis, keeping his eyes on his work.

"Hold these for a sec..." he said, mumbling as he dragged one series of coding down to a separate area. Jarvis took them without question, but took a step back afterwards. Flynn, the User, had brought him back to hold stuff for him. Jarvis would've rolled his eyes if he were alone, but for now he just kept his head bowed, eyes trained on the panel, handing the slides back or taking them whenever Flynn asked.

"And that's how it's done." Flynn said, satisfied. He took a step back, and the panel slid back into the ground. Jarvis pondered this for a moment before feeling a violent pull at his body, and the world around him changed from black to blinding white in a matter of seconds. It faded equally as fast, and he took a second to regain his composure as he looked around. They were just outside of Tron city, on one of the bridges that crossed over the surrounding chasms. Jarvis looked around for Flynn, watching as the User crossed the bridge.

Flynn stopped, then turned, watching Jarvis stand there like a deer caught in a freeway.

"Well come on man, I've got work to do!" he said, giving a halfhearted laugh afterwards to try and downplay the mood that Jarvis was in. The aid swallowed then quickly nodded, jogging after Flynn, following close on his heels.

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Reviews are appreciated


	2. Chapter 2

**Title**: Trash Bin Heroes  
**Rating**: T  
**Universe**: Legacy  
**Pairing**: None atm  
**Word Count**: 1,020

* * *

The silence brought back memories, of himself, Clu and Tron all mulling around in empty spaces and empty buildings, building the world piece by piece. But now the silence is eerie, hanging there between the brightly lit buildings like a heavy, invisible blanket. Flynn glances over at Jarvis now and then, the program keeping his slight distance from the User.

"Looks like no one's home." Flynn announced after they walked several blocks. He crossed his arms, watching as Jarvis leaned his head back to see all the way up one of the skyscrapers they were standing near. The User turned away then, thinking to himself. This wasn't the Grid, it was a copy, a back-up, but not the one he had inhabited for so many years.

"I'll tell you what, Jarvis. We're going to do some programming..." Flynn paused, looking at Jarvis' somewhat morose expression. "Well, I'm going to do some programming. You're going to lend a hand, how's that sound?"

Jarvis just gave a halfhearted nod, and Flynn shrugged. His disc was gone, and along with it, the way home. True enough he could synthesize another disc, but then there was the challenge of having the portal reopened, which meant somehow getting contact to the outside.

"How'd Clu do it?" He asked, turning to look at Jarvis. Jarvis blinked, staring back at him, and mouthed words after a few awkward seconds.

"How did - how did Clu do what, sir?"

"How was he able to contact the outside and send the page, how'd he do it?"

"I don't know." Jarvis answered simply, and he was telling the truth - he didn't. Flynn didn't look that convinced. "You're telling me Clu didn't inform you at all about the steps he took?"

"No, sir."

"What -did- he tell you?"

"Only what he deemed necessary, sir."

"...jeez." Was all Kevin could come up with after that, and a long pause in between. On the bright side, , he had someone to help hold things. Flynn yawned, turning away from Jarvis and stretching. He felt more tired than he had in a long, long time - and so much had happened that he didn't know how to handle it all now that the danger was gone. This was the fallout from the explosion of some very non-Zen occurrences, and it required a bed.

Flynn looked around - from ground level the city was actually quite foreboding, the buildings so massive that it was impossible for one to gain their bearings by finding a landmark unless they were in a better spot. He really didn't feel like walking that much further either. The User turned, finding the entrance to the nearest building and entering, doors sliding open for him. Jarvis followed a few feet behind, looking around the empty building that they had entered into.

Flynn knelt down, hand to the floor as he accessed the building interface, reconfiguring the ground floor. Walls materialized from the floor and ceiling, meeting and switching from translucent to opaque as they formed the separate rooms. Jarvis watched wide eyed as Flynn transformed the empty ground floor space into a series of living quarters.

"Not too bad, huh?" the User asked, turning to Jarvis. Jarvis stared at him then blinked, stumbling over his words before answering.

"Quite excellent sir."

Flynn didn't think too much the comment, he got the feeling Jarvis would complement anyone who he considered his superior. None the less he gave Jarvis a nod of appreciation, pausing, leaning in and squinting. "You're not gonna run off on me, are you?"

Jarvis shook his head quickly. "No sir!"

"Good…" he said, sounding intentionally threatening. He'd give the little weasel a spook and he knew that'd keep him in line, and it worked. Jarvis wasn't able to go any paler, but Flynn knew he'd done a good job once he saw the subtle change in Jarvis' posture. "Ah well, find yourself a place to chill. I need a nap, when I'm back up we'll try and figure out..." he paused, honestly having no idea where to start. "Figure out something."

The aid program nodded, but didn't seem that concerned. He had someone here to tell him what to do, and his life wasn't in immediate danger. He had never encountered the User Flynn face to face, but had long known that he wasn't easy to anger. Jarvis wouldn't fear for his life with every misstep, which in itself was an enormous burden gone from his shoulders. He watched Flynn turn and walk into one of the new synthesized rooms, door sliding shut behind him.

The program looked around, and then turned, making his way to the furthest room from Flynn's and entering in. It was sparse, lit from strips along the floor and walls, with a bed in the corner. Jarvis moved over to it and sat down, releasing a sigh. Here he was, reborn to serve a User – and in the back of his mind the thought lingered - that perhaps the User wouldn't need him any longer once he was able to find his way out. That was a thought, however he pushed it away, and it wouldn't serve him any good. Perhaps the User would let him survive if he did his given tasks with excellence. That small, simple hope set the Program at ease immediately.

The User however was not as easily set at peace, and Flynn sat in his room, fooling around with a small datapad he had synthesized. Light condensed to form a floating shape, and once it had solidified the bit began to float around frantically.

"Hey buddy, just need some co-hey!" He sputtered mid sentence as the bit floated out of the room and down the hall. He crossed his arms, the frown beginning to border on a pout. After almost a minute of waiting for the bit to return, Flynn accepted that the small binary had abandoned him.

"Everyone's a critic." He told himself gruffly, but found humor in it and chuckled as he brought the covers up over him, the lights dimming upon an unseen command.

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Reviews are appreciated


	3. Chapter 3

**Title**: Trash Bin Heroes  
**Rating**: T  
**Universe**: Legacy  
**Pairing**: None atm  
**Word Count**: 872

* * *

Jarvis found himself restlessly pacing about his new quarters as time went on. He knew very well that not much time had passed since he had entered into the room; however it was beginning to feel like hours rather than minutes. The program had been resting easy just moments before, but found himself to be with too much energy to sit still. He looked about his room for a few more seconds, trying to see if there was anything there to keep him occupied, but was out of luck. Jarvis glanced then at the door - if he just explored the different rooms, that wasn't running off. It wasn't like he was leaving the building.

With a shaky self assertiveness he nodded to himself and walked out of the room into the hallway. Immediately movement caught the corner of his vision, and he turned to the left. His initial reaction was to take a step back, but the floating object approached him faster than he thought he could even run. It circled around him and he stayed still, more confused than intimidated after a few seconds.

"Identify yourself." he demanded, trying to wave it away when it got too close to his face.

"Yes." It replied, shape changing into an orange octahedron.

"I didn't ask for an answer - I asked for a name." he repeated, frustration overcoming any lingering apprehension.

"Yes yes yes."

Jarvis rolled his eyes, batting at it again once it floated closer to him. "Cease!" he ordered.

"No." It changed then into a shape that Jarvis was sure he didn't have a name for. After that however it didn't take him long to realize what he was dealing with. He'd done some reading on Bits during data collection however he didn't think there were any remaining in the system. Jarvis knew at least that Bits didn't just appear out of nowhere, so the only explanation could be that the User Flynn made it.

"Leave me alone. Go back to the User." Jarvis told it, but the Bit just floated around his head like an orbiting moon.

"No no no no no..." it chanted on as it circled him and Jarvis grumbled, turning back to his door and entering his room quickly, hoping the doors would slide shut before the Bit could follow him - a plan that promptly failed.

* * *

"Jarvis!"

Upon hearing the call, the Program shot out of his bed, Bit rising from its place on the nightstand and following close behind. Flynn was waiting out in the hallway, arms crossed with a datapad in his hand. Jarvis approached, bowing low, which caused Flynn to grimace in response.

"Don't do that." he said quietly, motioning with his hand for Jarvis to stand back up straight. The Program did, trying to mask his embarrassment. Flynn moved closer to Jarvis, the Program consciously making an effort to stay in one place as the User approached.

"We're on a backup system, got it?" Flynn asked, to which Jarvis nodded. "Good. I had figured that Clu had somehow found a way to keep the power company from shutting the supply to the arcade off, but I checked the levels just a minute ago and things could be better..."

Jarvis frowned, looking at the datapad, which showed a cylindrical icon that was blinking red.

"We're on a backup generator now." Flynn explained, "I had one in the basement in case I was in here and a storm cut out the power or something..." he stopped, noticing Jarvis' expression of puzzlement, and cleared his throat. "Alright program, long story short, we've got a few weeks of power left in here. Out in the uh - User world that's maybe...a few hours."

"So what does that mean?" Jarvis dared to ask, "What can be done?"

"Hold your horses I have an idea. Clu found Alan's pager number, so we can just do the same thing with Sam's phone. He's got to be listed. We find the number, give Sam a ring and he can come and switch the power back on."

"A spectacular plan sir, your ingenious solution to the pro-"

"Don't do that, man."

Jarvis looked like he had been kicked in the gut, but just gave a terse nod. Flynn brought his attention back to the datapad.

"This means accessing the phone lines, going through that and then finding a database of numbers. If Clu could do it, then it won't be a problem for us."

"'Us', sir?"

"Somebody has to fly the Recognizer."

Jarvis gave the User the best nervous smile he could muster. "Sir - I am not a pilot program, I don't think I'm the one best capable for such a task."

"You're what..." Flynn took a step back, examining Jarvis' lightsuit. "Application software with a specialization in...?"

"Presentation, information and data gathering."

"Close enough!" Flynn exclaimed, wrapping an arm around Jarvis' shoulders, making the program stiffen. "Don't worry, it's easy. You'll get the hang of it." Flynn glanced over to the Bit that had been floating quietly during their conversation.

"Don't you think he'll get the hang of it?"

"Yes."

Jarvis shot a nasty glare at the Bit, walking with Flynn to the empty streets waiting outside.

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Reviews appreciated


	4. Chapter 4

**Title**: Trash Bin Heroes  
**Rating**: T  
**Universe**: Legacy  
**Pairing**: None atm  
**Word Count**: 846

* * *

The Recognizer would take about an hour to fully form, Flynn had informed him. Still, Jarvis was perfectly content to stand around the slowly forming inner frame of the transport as it built itself from the ground up. Flynn had simply accessed a library of various designs and chosen on, and with his otherworldly User powers, had commanded the Recognizer into existence.

The Bit orbited around one of the forming pillars, but soon grew bored of the lines of light and flew back down to Jarvis, hovering beside him. The aid program watched in silence for a few more seconds before speaking.

"We should've been able to do the same." He said with a touch of bitterness. The Bit didn't give him any response, and Jarvis stood there in a thick silence before scoffing at the lack of agreement. "Well what do you know anyway?" Jarvis added afterwards quietly, turning to walk back inside. The Bit followed behind him, zipping from side to side.

Flynn was in his room, multiple datapads on the floor as he sat cross legged and read over one of them. Jarvis knocked on the door, standing just far enough back from it so that it wouldn't open automatically.

"Yeah?" Flynn called, and Jarvis stepped forward, entering.

"Is there anything I can do to be of greater use, sir?" Jarvis asked, almost unnoticeably tilting his head down.

"No I've got it, but thanks..." Flynn answered back, the majority of his attention on the datapad. "It's a heavy science, man."

Jarvis didn't bother appearing polite if Flynn wasn't looking, and turned to leave, the Bit floating close behind him.

* * *

"Jarvis you just gotta relax, it's easy!" Flynn reassured the Program as the Recognizer's platform raised up from the ground. Jarvis looked slightly ill as he stood in front of the controls, looking at the handles before him.

"I'm sure you, as a User, sir, would be much more capable of doing this yourself."

Flynn looked at Jarvis, and the smile on his face that reminded the program of Clu. The User turned to face out of the Recognizer's cockpit, the platform finally at its resting spot at the top of the pylons. He stepped aside so Jarvis could stand before the controls, clearing his throat when the program didn't move at first. Jarvis swallowed, stepping forward, slowly raising both arms and settling his hands on either side of the control rod. He wrapped his fingers around the thin cylindrical control and immediately the Recognizer hummed to life, the interior lights flickering on, the reddish orange glow matching Jarvis' own circuitry.

Flynn looked around, the heavy red lighting making him grimace.

"We can do better than that." he said, walking over to the back wall and pressing his hand to it, activating an interface and swiping through the various command options before tapping on one of the color options. Blue began to overtake the red circuitry glow, spreading through the Recognizer from the interior and then to the exterior. Flynn turned, hearing a surprised shout come from Jarvis. The program had backed away from the controls, which glowed blue now - and Jarvis' own circuitry had changed as well. The blue on the program's lightsuit matched that of the Recognizer.

Jarvis looked absolutely snide as he examined the blue on him, but Flynn ignored it.

"Alright start her up, let's see how she flies." The User spoke as he clasped hands behind his back, walking up to stand beside Jarvis. The program took the controls back in his hands gingerly, and the Recognizer responded with a deep thrumming in its engines. It wasn't that Jarvis didn't know how to pilot one, he had the knowledge already in his programming; he was simply inexperienced.

He pulled up just slightly on the control rod and they immediately began to rise, the Recognizer's vertical engines sending them upwards instantly. Jarvis squirmed as he saw the ground grow further away, but didn't stare at it for too long. His new superior was watching over his shoulder and he couldn't disappoint. The Bit was the most excited, orbiting around Jarvis and the flight controls slowly as they continued to rise up.

"Take us towards the portal." Flynn ordered as he leaned against the nearby wall. Jarvis looked around now that they were above the skyline, and turned the control rod. Both Flynn and Jarvis were thrown to the floor as the Recognizer banked to the left, and Jarvis scrambled back up, tripping forward and grasping the controls once more.

"Nonononono!"

"Then _you_ do it!"

Jarvis took a few seconds in stabilizing the Recognizer and exhaled, his shoulders relaxing after a few seconds of steady flight. Flynn stood up, rubbing his elbow that he had landed on, covering his mouth as he tried to hide his snort with a fake cough. Jarvis eased his grip on the controls, beginning to get a feel for them and soon was able to correct their path, the Recognizer making its way to the Sea of Simulation, leaving the empty city behind.

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Reviews always appreciated.


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